This invention relates generally to furniture pieces and, more particularly, to a collapsible furniture piece that is movable between a bench configuration having a back support and a table configuration including a table and one or more benches.
Homeowners commonly purchase patio or deck furniture to provide comfortable and relaxing sitting areas. Typically, the homeowner desires an aesthetically pleasing furniture piece to enhance the patio or deck surroundings. For example, patio or deck benches provide a comfortable and relaxing sitting area for people who wish to enjoy the weather. However, such furniture may not provide a comfortable area to enjoy a meal. As a result, many homeowners also purchase a picnic table having an eating area and benches suitable for supporting one or more people during meal times. Once the meal is finished, however, these picnic tables may not provide the comfort and relaxation provided by other patio or deck furniture. Further, because of the relatively large size of a picnic table, the picnic table may limit the available useable patio or deck space.
In view of the foregoing, several attempts have been made to provide furniture that is convertible between a bench structure and a table structure. However, such furniture does not provide a quick and easy means of converting the furniture between the different configurations. At least some conventional convertible furniture pieces require complicated mechanical components to facilitate the conversion process, which results in complex conversion steps and/or undesirably high manufacturing costs. Further, such convertible furniture is often awkward and cumbersome. Considering all these factors, conventional convertible furniture pieces require a significant amount of time and effort to configure the furniture piece in one of the different configurations. Moreover, in either configuration, such furniture pieces require a significant amount of space, which may be undesirable for homeowners having a small patio or deck area.